


2. Body Art (the scars that haunt us)

by Star_catz1219



Series: Soulmate Alphabet [2]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Canon Related, Cute, Gay Zuko (Avatar), Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Ozai (Avatar) is an Asshole, POV Sokka (Avatar), Protective Sokka (Avatar), Romantic Soulmates, Scars
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-23
Updated: 2021-01-23
Packaged: 2021-03-15 00:21:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,430
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28929444
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Star_catz1219/pseuds/Star_catz1219
Summary: Soulmate au where whatever you write on your body appears on your soulmatesSokka has been writing to his soulmate his whole life. Why has his soulmate never responded?
Relationships: Aang/Katara (Avatar), Sokka/Zuko (Avatar)
Series: Soulmate Alphabet [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2121744
Comments: 2
Kudos: 176





	2. Body Art (the scars that haunt us)

**Author's Note:**

> Part 2 of my Soulmate Alphabet series!
> 
> Tw:  
> Talk of abuse  
> Burns  
> Scars  
> Self harm mentions 
> 
> Enjoy!

Sokka remembered the first time he messaged his soulmate. He had been 5, so excited when his birthday finally arrived because that meant he could talk to his soulmate for the first time. He knew his parents were hoping for it to be another Water Tribe member, whether from the North or South Pole, but Sokka didn't care. No matter what, this person would be his soulmate. They would be friends, or partners, forever. Which is why Sokka was so confused when his soulmate didn't respond.

Soulmates had the same birthday as each other, so Sokka knew his soulmate was able to talk to him. They just...weren't. Sokka knew his parents were concerned about it, but they tried to not let it show. 

Every day, without fail, Sokka would send messages to his soulmate. He sent good morning and goodnights, doodles, one time he even copied out one of his lessons, anything he could do so his soulmate would respond, but to no avail. Sokka tried, but the thought that 'he wasn't good enough, his soulmate would never want him' made its way through his mind, no matter how hard he tried to stop them.

Through the years, Sokka continued to message his soulmate. He wrote when his mother died, when his father left to fight in the war, when his sister became more serious and distant. He wrote through it all, praying to Tui and La for a response, but none came. Strangely enough, Katara never got responses either, leading Sokka to wonder what was wrong with the two of them. Everyone had a soulmate, someone they could connect with either on a romantic or platonic level. Why was this pair of siblings the only people whose soulmates refused to respond?

After they found Aang in the iceberg, Katara and Aang found out they were soulmates, hence why Katara never got responses, the boy was physically unable to message back. Sokka tried to be happy for his sister, he really did, but he couldn't help some bitterness seeping in. Now he was the only freak who had a soulmate who wouldn't respond. Of course he was.

As they made their way on the adventure, Aang mastering the elements and the avatar and his sister being all mushy, Sokka continued to write to his soulmate whenever possible. He had been running out of hope, before Katara discovered the Avatar, now he was fueled by the thought that now maybe his soulmate would show up. Every town they traveled to, he looked around, and saw many people with messages on their bodies, but none of them his. At one point, he thought he saw his messages on a cute girl's arm, only to rush to her and got some very strange looks when she told him she already had her soulmate, and hadn't gotten messages from another. It turns out "are you there?" was an incredibly common thing people sent each other, so after that Sokka made more personalized messages.

He continued to hear nothing from his soulmate, through Ba Sing Se, through the eclipse, through the trip to the air temple. Until a curveball came to their team.

Zuko.

Sokka wasn't sure what to think of the firebender. He was quiet, after joining them, never talking to the others unless asked, never looked them in the eye, and just tried to stay out of the way. Sokka also noticed the fire nation prince never talked about a soulmate, even though the topic came up a few times around the fire. The other boy also always had long sleeves on, something Sokka always wondered about. He assumed Zuko's soulmate was Mai, that quiet girl with the knives. She seemed Zuko's type, he supposed. But it made him wonder. Why would Zuko leave his soulmate like that? People weren't known for just abandoning their soulmates, especially voluntarily. 

He had tried asking the boy once, during one of their hunting trips, only to receive a glare so strong it made Sokka feel like he was on fire. He understood, the topic of soulmates was a tense one. Sokka didn’t understand, soulmates were a natural thing, to be celebrated. But he didn't pry, maybe the boy never knew his soulmate, like Sokka. Sokka continued to write on his arms whenever possible, still hoping a response would come.

Until of course, the Boiling Rock.

Zuko had insisted on tagging along, and as much as Sokka would never admit it, he was glad the jerkbender insisted on coming. He proved helpful in getting him to the prison, and he kept both of them from getting caught. Until he didn't. When Zuko was caught, Sokka felt himself stop breathing for a moment. As much as their relationship was rocky, he was really starting to like Zuko, and he hated seeing him in such a vulnerable position. He wasn't able to see Zuko again until he had been forced in the prison wear, where his arms were bare for Sokka to sew for the first time ever. And boy, were they a sight to see.

Scars covered up and down his arms. Some seemed to be made from blades, but most were burns. Lots and lots of burns. Big ones, small ones, there were so many. Through them all, Sokka could make out a little bit of writing. Just one message could clearly be made out, written in a black font Sokka knew well. It read "hey soulmate, it's me. If you would respond that'd be great." That was his message. Zuko...was his soulmate. The boy caught Sokka looking, quickly covering as much of his arms up as he could. Sokka looked away, not wanting to invade his privacy. Before he could say anything, he heard noise coming down the hallway, so Sokka was forced to call out a few insults before walking away from the cell, before he was caught looking suspicious.

Sokka walked away, reeling. His soulmate was his former enemy, firebender, prince of the fire nation, socially awkward, Zuko? There's no way.

Unfortunately for him, he and Zuko never got to be alone until they made it back to the temple. As soon as Katara finished checking them all over (and giving him a very stern talking to) he pulled Zuko away to another wing of the massive temple. Zuko, of course, was reluctant. Finally, Sokka was able to convince Zuko to follow him.

The two teenagers sat opposite each other, Zuko back in his long robes, covering up the scars and with that, Sokka's messages. He tried not to wince while looking at the fabric covering Zuko's arms, especially knowing what was underneath. He cleared his throat awkwardly.

"So uh...we're soulmates?"

Zuko only nodded, and Sokka internally cringed. This is not how that conversation is supposed to go, it was supposed to be a good thing, to meet your soulmate. But this was anything from good. He noticed Zuko shaking a bit, so he softened his voice, asking, "why did you never respond?"

And Zuko told him everything.

Zuko told him how the day before his fifth birthday, his father told him he would be forbidden from speaking to his soulmate, as he would be betrothed to a 'proper, fire nation who is worthy', but Zuko didn't want that. Zuko wanted his soulmate. He had said this to his father, and Ozai, being who he was, had been furious. He grabbed five years old Zuko by the arms, squeezing tight. Zuko described the feeling of bruising pain, into the excruciating feeling of burns. All the way down his arms, right down to his wrists. They never received proper care, and so they stayed angry red scars, much like the one on his face. He talked about how when he was twelve, he had hoped maybe some pain would bring some feeling back into his arms, where the nerves had been damaged the most. That's where the blade marks were from, himself. 

Sokka felt like he was going to be sick. How could someone do that to a five year old? He noticed that Zuko was shaking, so he asked the other boy permission to touch him. Zuko told him it was okay, so Sokka slowly moved to wrap his arms around the firebender. He held him, whispering affirmative words to him as Zuko calmed down. 

They stayed like that for a while, holding each other and softly talking. Sokka knew they were going to have to discuss the situation more later, but for now this was okay. They would be okay.

**Author's Note:**

> Follow my tumblr http://starcats1219.tumblr.com for more!


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